Cambodia Consultative Group Meeting

Phnom Penh, 19-21 June, 2002

Theme: Poverty Reduction and Governance

Denmark brief on Specific Areas

Thursday, 20 June 2002

Denmark strongly supports initiatives underway to rationalize the civil service - to improve pay and renumeration, to streamlining management processes, to build capacity, and to enhance governance. To ensure successful implementation of the new classification and pay regimes, and the Priority Mission Groups (PMGs), it is imperative that the distortion resulting from donor-paid allowances be first eliminated. The current practice of supplementation of civil servants’ salaries by various donor-funded project, generally uncoordinated and in a number of cases abused, must be discontinued. This issue must first be addressed, if initiatives to transform the public administration are to succeed.

I take this opportunity to inform that Denmark under recent annual consultations informed the Government of Cambodia that it is phasing out incentive payments under Danish-supported activities, latest by the end of the present phases of already approved, on-going projects. For new projects to be approved in the future, Denmark will not be making any provisions for payment of supplementary salaries, as such measures are not sustainable. Denmark finds it unacceptable that in order to reach the poor segments of the population of Cambodia the donors have to secure decent salaries to the civil servants. Denmark urges the Cambodian Government, in this regard, to establish, in close dialogue with the donors and as soon as possible a concrete plan for phasing out donor-paid salary allowance - as a necessary first step to the various initiatives being undertaken to make the civil service as efficient as possible. I look to and encourage for the support of all donors in giving the Royal Government of Cambodia the necessary impetus and co-operation in this important process.

Denmark supports the statement of the Working Group for the Natural Resources Management (WGNRM) and the NGO Forum with regard to the Forest Sector Reform, the Fisheries Sector Reform, and the critical reforms in Land Distribution and Management, and security of tenure for poor people.

Regarding the Forestry sector reforms the management of Cambodia’s forests is at present in a mess. There are many and clear indications that the Concession Management System is suffering from a number of fundamental distortions, which makes it, in Cambodia, neither sustainable nor profitable. There are serious deficiencies in the management of licenses of forestry and natural resources and in this connection a mixing up of military-, management-and economical interests.

Denmark highly recommends that this issue is brought into the formulation of the strategy for implementing the National Forestry Policy, a process that deserves the highest attention and public participation. The needs of local communities dependent on forest resources and their continued access to such resources must be urgently addressed. Denmark strongly supports that the necessary policies and legislation to support community forestry try be put in place and enforced as soon as possible.

The management of the Cambodian Forest is a test case for the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) with regard to Natural Resources Management (NRM) ability; it is urgent that this capability is demonstrated within the next year, after years of delays, confusion, and mistrust.

In this respect, I would like to inform the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) and donors that Denmark supports Concern Worldwide’s Community Forestry Programme and funds Global Witness as part of the Forest Crime Monitoring and Reporting Project (FCMRP).

It has, therefore, been an embarrassing experience to discuss the Forest Crime and Monitoring Project (FCRMRP) with the Government lately. I shall give you one example only. At a meeting Monday May 20, the chairman expressed sympathies and condemnations of the physical assaults on the head of the local office of Global Witness. In spite of this, representatives of Department for Forestry and Wildlife continues to accuse Global Witness of working against the interest of the Royal Government of Cambodia, in criminal connections, as cited from a written statement by Department of Forestry and Wildlife circulated at the meeting.

“In conclusion, Global Witness has no independent work and has the intention to facilitate and support criminal offenders. In other word, if we look our from the criminal point of view, they can be the part of criminal offenders, and others supporting their activities behind can also be considered as the supporter for criminal activities. Global Witness has moved from non-cooperative performance with the Royal Government of Cambodia to close cooperation with forest criminal offenders to fight against the Royal Government of Cambodia”.

This is indeed counterproductive.

It should be remembered that 

Denmark congratulates Royal Government of Cambodia for the successful commune elections. The clarification of roles and mandates of involved ministry and other national government entities and provincial authorities vis-à-vis the Commune Councils have yet to be developed, however. It is recognised that the major experience in decentralised planning and centralised channelling of funds to village development project is the Seila experience. The challenge is to incorporate those lessons into the work of the Department of Local Administration (DOLA) and the National Committee to Support the Communes (NCSC), and have unified rural development strategy. Given the thrust of our assistance to Cambodia. I am pleased to inform that Denmark through Seila, is supporting the development and piloting of NRE planning methodologies and tools at commune level, to support the mainstreaming of natural resource and environment management concerns in decentralized planning and implementation of activities

I am pleased to inform that regarding Aid coordination within the Royal Government of Cambodia. Denmark will continue to support The Council for Development of Cambodia (CDC) for better aid coordination by the Royal Government of Cambodia. The Danish supported Office for Natural Resources and Environment in the Council for Development of Cambodia will boost its role in this regard. This is possible because per 1^st of August the donor role of the Danish Government will, be taken care of by a Danish Embassy office in Phnom Penh for development co-operation with Cambodia with reference to the Danish Embassy in Bangkok.

The Support to the Council for Development of Cambodia (CDC) will be aimed at strengthening the ability and capacity of the Council, on behalf of Royal Government of Cambodia to monitor and facilitate the sectoral donor dialogue. Denmark agrees with the analysis and proposals for dialogue and partnership outlined in the papers of the Royal Government of Cambodia presented at this meeting.

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